DRC: Félix Tshisekedi makes 8 recommendations to Mines Minister, to increase contribution of the sector to the State Budget

The President of the Republic Félix Tshisekedi insisted on the imperative to proceed with the rationalization of the management of the mining sector, in his communication during the 29th meeting of the Council of Ministers held on Friday, November 19. 

For Félix Tshisekedi, said rationalization will make it possible to increase the contribution of the mining sector to the State Budget and to benefit, as a priority, “the people 
first” from the mineral wealth of the DRC. This by effectively fighting against mining fraud and putting an end to a kind of squandering of mining assets by certain political actors and public service officials involved in the administration of the Mining Code. 

Thus, while waiting for all the light to be shed on the process of forfeiture of the Exploration Permits concerned by this process, Félix Tshisekedi made 8 recommendations to the Minister of Mines:
 
1. To suspend the granting of Exploration Permits for mining rights and / or quarries, as well as changes and leases of mining rights until the total and urgent cleaning up of the cadastral file by the Mining Cadastre;

2. To initiate the procedure for the withdrawal of mining rights and / or authorization for permanent quarrying following breaches of the
administrative and social obligations  contained in article 286 of the Mining Code. This is particularly the case for non-payment of surface rights, failure to start work within the legal deadline and non-compliance with commitments vis-à-vis social obligations within the regulatory deadline; 

3. Continue to identify the research areas where illegal mining activities are carried out;

4. To start the work of the commission responsible for identifying all the mining companies supposed to cede 10% of their share capital to the Congolese State, at the time of the transformation of the exploration permit into an exploitation permit, in accordance with the article 71, litera d of the Mining Code; 

5. To provide, in collaboration with the Minister of State, Minister of Portfolio, a permanent framework for the management of the participation of the State in private companies holding operating permits, involving the Mining Cadastre and the Superior Council of Wallet ; 

6. To speed up the process of recruiting the consultant responsible for carrying out the technical audit of the cadastral map of the Mining Cadastre over a period taking into account the last ten years;

7. To initiate, jointly with the Minister of State, Minister of the Portfolio, a systematic control of the management of the mining assets of the mining companies of the State portfolio. This control should make it possible to know the exploitation of mining assets by leases or by joint-venture and to determine the level of revenue from them to the Public Treasury; 

8. To assess the regularity of the renewal process for certain operating rights, for which information on suspicions of corruption and the loss of revenue for the State has reached it.

Félix Tshisekedi also insisted that a report on the level of execution of these instructions be presented to the Council in the coming days. 

Finally, he asked the General Inspectorate of Finance to look into control in the mining sector as a whole.

Note that during the 23rd 
meeting of the Council of Ministers, the Minister of Mines, Antoinette N’samba Kalambayi presented the conclusions of the detailed report on the illegal exploitation of mineral resources, made at the request of the President of the Republic.